Drying cabinet



Aug. 23, 1949. M. B. WILLIAMS DRYING CABINET Filed May 26, 1948 FIG FIG. I

FIG.4

INVENTOR. MARY BLAIR WILLIAMS BY 510 1 MAL ATTORNEY Patented Augr23, 1949 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE name cnnmn'r Mary Blair Williamc, Miami, Fla. Application May 26, ms, Serial No. 29,391

. dish towels and such articles of clothing and the like as can be conveniently suspended in a cabinet. It will be understood, however, that the invention is not limited to the drying of any particular articles or materials and that the entire device, or portions of it can be used for other purposes and in other relations.

The average housewife, after'washing dishes or rinsing out a few articles of clothing, finds it necessary to leave the dish towels or articles of clothing on a rack to dry. The drying process usually takes considerable time because there is not enough circulation of warm air about the articles; and, moreover, the articles are exposed for all to see--a situation all too frequently not desirable. I

It is an object of my invention to provide a drying cabinet suitable for mounting in an opening in a wall and arranged so that the warm,

2 Claiml. (Cl. 34-163) moist air from the drying cabinet is discharged into or behind the wall.

Another object of m invention is to provide drying cabinet in which the drying medium passes straight through from top .to bottom.

Another object of my invention is to provide a drying cabinet having means for conveniently supporting and stretching articles to be dried.

Another object of my invention is to provide a drying cabinet which 'is simple and neat in design, attractive in appearance, inexpensive to manufacture, efhcient in operation and rugged in construction.

Other and further objects and advantages of my invention will be apparent from thefollowing description taken in connection with the accompanying drawing in which like characters oi ref- .erence designate corresponding parts throughout the several views, and wherein:

Fig. 1 is a front view of a drying cabinet; 8,0? cording to my invention.

Fig. 2 is a cross-sectional view'taken along the line 2-2 in Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary detail view showing th construction of the adjustable hanger.

Fig. 4 is a top view of the detail shown in Fig. 3.

The cabinet may be constructed of metal or any suitable material; and, as shown in v the drawings, it comprises a drying chamber ID, a heating chamber II and an exhaust chamber l2.

The drying chamber I0 is provided on each side thereof with a plurality of upright supports l3 which are mounted securely in the side walls oi the cabinet. A stationary upper hanger I l is fixed horizontally between each pair of upright supports it. Also, an adjustable lower hanger I5 is slidably mounted on each pair of upright supports [3. The adjustable hangers l5 are provided at each end with a latch l6 which is pressed by spring I1 into engagement with ratchet teeth l8 cut in the upright supports l3. Each latch I 6 is provided with a thumb piece l6 for manual operation in raising the hanger IS. A door l9 provides access to the drying chamber. The drying medium enters the drying cabinet through nozzles 20 which are mounted in the upper wall of the drying chamber so as to direct the drying medium downwardly between the hangers l4, and they may be sufliciently small to permit the cabinet to operate under a slight vacuum.

The heating chamber H is located above the drying chamber 10 and communicates therewith by means of the nozzles 20. The heating chamber is provided with one or more electrical heating elements 2|, and may also contain a filter element 22 of asbestos or other non-inflammable material. Holes 23 are provided in the upper wall of the heating chamber for admitting the drying medium.

The exhaust chamber I2 is located beneath the drying chamber I 0 and communicates therewith by means of foraminous material 24. An exhaust fan 25 is located-within the exhaust chamber for drawing air or other drying medium through the cabinet and exhausting it therefrom through holes 26 in the bottom of the exhaust chamber. A switch 21 is conveniently located for turning the heating elements and the exhaust fan on and off as desired.

Angular flanges 28 are bolted or otherwise fastened to all four sides of mydrying cabinet to cover irregularities in a wall aperture into which my cabinet is adapted for insertion.

In the use of my drying cabinet, the dish towels or other articles to be dried are hung over one or more of the upper stationary hangers I4 or clipped thereto by clothes pins (not shown). The articles to be dried may also be similarly clipped to the adjustable lower hangers I5 and stretched tight, if desired, by pullingthe adjustable hangers l5 downward so that the latches l6 automatically engage in a lower tooth on the ratchets l8. The door I! may then be closed and the switch 21 thrown to tiu'n on the heating elements 2| and the exhaust fan 25. The action of the fan draws air through the openings 23, across the filter 22, past the heating elements 2|, and through the nozzles 20 which direct the heated air downwardly between the articles suspended on the hangers for drying. The heated air picks up moisture as it descends, and the heavy damp air passes out of the drying chamber through the foraminous material 24 and is exhausted through the openings 26 in the bottom of the exhaust chamber. Articles are quickly dried in my cabinet, and the heating elements and fan may then be turned off and the door to the drying chamber may then be opened and the articles, easily removed from the cabinet. In releasing the articles from the adjustable lower hangers [5, the thumb pieces I6 may be depressed against the action of springs I! so as to release the latches l6 from the ratchet teeth l8 and the adjustable hangers l can then be raised to a convenient height.

It will be seen that the drying medium passes straight downwardly through my cabinet so that a minimum of resistance is offered and a maximum of efliciency is obtained. Also, it will be noted that in my cabinet the damp drying air is exhausted into or behind the wall in which the cabinet is arranged to be mounted, so that none of the odor of the exhaust enters the room with which the cabinet communicates.

While I have shown and described one embodiment of my invention, it will be realized that many modifications, changes and adaptations can be made without departing from the scope of my invention as defined in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A drying cabinet comprising a drying chamber, a heating chamber above said drying chamber and an exhaust chamber below said drying chamber, said drying chamber being provided with a plurality of upright supports on each side thereof, a hanger fixed horizontally from side to side in said drying chamber between each pair of upright supports and near the top thereof for holding an article to be dried, an adjustable hanger for holding a lower portion of said article similarly fitted between each said pair of upright supports and arranged for vertical sliding engagement therewith, ratchet teeth on each said upright support and a latch at each end of each said adjustable hanger for engagement therewith, electrical heating elements in said heating chamber for heating a drying medium, nozzles for directing said heated drying medium downward between said upright supports, a fan for pulling sai drying medium into said heating chamber, past said heating elements, through said nozzles, downward between said upright supports and exhausting it through the bottom of said exhaust chamber, and angular flanges arranged around said cabinet to adapt it for mounting in an opening in a wall whereby drying medium exhausted from said cabinetpasses behind said wall.

2. A drying cabinet comprising a drying chamber, a heating chamber above said drying chamber and an exhaust chamber below said drying chamber, said drying chamber being provided with a plurality of upright supports on each side thereof, a hanger fixed horizontally from side to side in said drying chamber between each pair of upright supports and near the top thereof for holding an article to be dried, an adjustable hanger for holding a lower portion of said article similarly fitted between each said pair of MARY BLAIR WILLIAMS.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 864,310 Knott Aug. 27, 1907 1,693,308 Merkowitz Nov. 2'7, 1928 1,752,797 Hutchinson, Jr. Apr. 1, 1930 1,886,286 Martin Nov. 1, 1932 2,289,299 Westover July 7, 1942 2,333,236 Dreisel Nov. 2, 1943 2,377,255 McCauley May 29, 1945 2,411,365 Card Nov. 19, 1946 

